Chapter 96

Whether Yelu Ma Wu's little stockade was preserved or not didn't matter; what mattered was what could be done through this opportunity. And as for Zhao Jiu's insistence on going out this time, he had made it clear to the several ministers: it was fundamentally not for the sake of these five hundred Jin cavalry... even though the key to the Shouzhou victory was also the annihilation of a little over a thousand core cavalry... In the final analysis, he only hoped to use this opportunity to resolve the institutional and moral crisis triggered by Zhai Chong's five thousand troops arriving so abruptly.

After all, in the Imperial Lord's view, for a court in exile, every bit of strength had to be valued. Five thousand native troops were enough to warrant attention, not to mention the Zhai brothers—that is, Big Zhai and Little Zhai—whose outstanding performance in the Western Capital Luoyang made the Imperial Lord think all the more highly of their clansman Zhai Chong.

And if he truly gave up this opportunity, allowing these five thousand men to be slaughtered outside the city by the subsequent main Jin army, the Imperial Lord would find it absolutely unacceptable.

As for an emperor insisting on personally overseeing a motley army in battle—such a breach of decorum and ancestral law drew particular displeasure from the more cautious ministers in court, which in turn triggered a secondary alignment between conservatives and radicals—that was an unforeseen complication.

But still, as the saying goes, ancestral law and decorum meant nothing to the Imperial Lord, especially when compared to several thousand human lives.

This matter had some benefit, little risk, and might reduce future risks—so he did it. Never mind that Zhai Chong's surname was Zhai, which gave the Imperial Lord some extra fanciful thoughts, hoping for combat power like that of the Zhu Family Manor or the Zeng Family Market; even if it weren't so, he would still have come out.

Of course, what the Imperial Lord didn't know was that, regardless of whether the Zhai clan had any connection to legendary local magnates like the Zeng Family Market or the Zhu Family Manor, at this very moment, outside the city, there truly was a standard historical legendary figure—the Khitan general Yelu Ma Wu, whom the Imperial Lord, Hu Yantong, and everyone else had underestimated.

Moreover, Yelu Ma Wu's five hundred cavalry were also a legendary unit etched into Chinese history! In some low-end game, they'd warrant a star rating—the purple kind!

Because, in another timeline, it was precisely Yelu Ma Wu leading these five hundred cavalry as the vanguard who suddenly arrived at Yangzhou city.

And at that time, a Zhao Song Imperial Lord named Zhao Gou was inside Yangzhou city, carousing with laundry maids. The Eastern Administration Minister was Huang Qianshan, the Western Administration Minister was Wang Boyan, the Imperial Camp Commander-in-Chief was Wang Yuan, the Eunuch Bureau chief was called Kang Lü, and the outer general was Liu Guangshi.

Then, relying on these five hundred cavalry, Yelu Ma Wu broke Yangzhou, chased off Zhao Gou and his ultra-luxurious lineup, along with tens of thousands of Song troops, and directly caused the entire wealthy Huainan region to lose its defenses.

And it was very likely that these five hundred cavalry caused Zhao Gou, who was seeking pleasure at the time, to become impotent, permanently losing his ability to father children.

Zhao Jiu knew none of these things. If he had, he'd probably just sigh a few times, because without Yelu Ma Wu needing to chase them again, most of the main actors inside Yangzhou city had already been either body-snatched by him, executed, or demoted.

The few survivors had now apparently reformed.

And thinking about it this way, although the Imperial Lord had never possessed imperial dignity and didn't care about ancestral law, drawing criticism from many ministers, he had still done a bit of small work.

"Minister Zhai, do you understand?" Zhao Jiu, clad in a bright red robe, was sitting upright with his hands on his belt inside a large tent he had bestowed. Dozens of candles burned together inside the tent, illuminating the whole space as if it were daylight.

"I understand!" The man before him, Zhai Chong, who was already forty or fifty years old, prostrated himself almost completely on the ground, his voice trembling slightly. In truth, his mind was blank. Such a posture could only be explained by the principle that everything has its nemesis—a local magnate is naturally afraid of the Imperial Lord!

"Repeat it!" Zhao Jiu's expression was blank as he continued to pressure the other man.

"Yes!" Zhai Chong still didn't raise his head. "This expulsion of Yelu Ma Wu's five hundred cavalry is not about military merit or spoils, but about the future safety of the five thousand men under the city... about the future safety of my five thousand men under the city! Because when Wanyan Yinshu arrives, the various armies under the city will be in danger of annihilation! His Majesty came out at risk to save the lives of my five thousand men under the city!"

"Good that you know." Zhao Jiu's expression didn't change, but his voice grew much harsher. "Quickly dispatch troops to cross the river, and make sure to drive off these five hundred cavalry!"

"Your command!" Zhai Chong responded vigorously, then quickly rose, not daring to glance behind him, and hurried out of the tent with his hand on his sword.

Once Zhai Chong left, Zhao Jiu's expression relaxed slightly, and he turned to look at the person beside him.

"Your subject is useless!" When the Imperial Lord looked at him, the young Academician Lin, who had suffered who knows how much in the past few days and whose eyes had been red all along, immediately burst into tears. He stepped forward, struggling to bow with clasped hands. "I thought I could share His Majesty's burdens, but I am useless in everything... This afternoon, Zhai Chong was still putting on airs, and I was secretly pleased, thinking I had won him over. But when it came down to it, I couldn't move him an inch... My family has received the nation's grace, yet at this time of national crisis, I lack even the strength of a common man. I am truly ashamed."

Seeing this, Zhao Jiu was about to comfort him.

"Academician Lin, what nonsense are you talking?!"

However, just as the Imperial Lord was searching for words, one person nearby, seeing the young Academician Lin weeping uncontrollably, grew thoroughly impatient. "You are a Hanlin Academician; your proper duty is to handle documents for His Majesty, to attend His Majesty's side and enjoy peace. At a time of national crisis, you stepped forward, risking your very life to do what others dared not do for the nation. So what if you didn't succeed? You must know that since the Jingkang Incident, how many have abandoned their proper duties and scattered? Some have even gone so far as to harm the nation and its people! At a time like this, having someone willing to act is already remarkable. How could His Majesty blame you? And on what grounds should others look down on you? Must one put on airs just because a task is hard, tiring, or trivial, to be considered a minister of renown?"

The crowd, hearing the sharp words laced with barbs, followed the voice and saw that it was Yan Xiaozhong, the Prefect of Tangzhou.

Just as Zhao Jiu was about to say a few conciliatory words for the sake of unity, Prefect Yan, disregarding everything, raised his voice again to continue his admonition: "Even I, Yan Xiaozhong, as a prefect, lost my territory and was captured, carrying a shoulder pole and taking lashes while doing hard labor for the Jin army, and I never felt ashamed enough to shed a single tear! Academician Lin, you have a bright future ahead. Why wallow in self-pity? If you keep this up, you'll only invite disdain!"

Hearing this, the young Academician Lin could no longer cry. He forced himself to stop, clasped his hands, and thanked the other man.

As for the Imperial Lord Zhao Jiu, he had long since given up on speaking.

Zhang Jun, who was accompanying them, said a few words: "Ministers like Lu Xiang are merely more cautious... Their desire to serve the nation is no different from ours."

Yan Xiaozhong sneered coldly and retorted directly: "How dare we discuss the various ministers? You must know that men like those ministers have their own dignity and face. Compared to them, the mere lives of a few thousand men outside the city, while the imperial residence is in exile, are not worth mentioning!"

Zhang Jun said nothing more, and Liu Ziyu didn't come to his friend's defense either... because everyone knew that while the Imperial Lord's trip was meant to cure the illness and save lives, the ministers who stayed behind in the hall to protest seemed to have their own reasons. The two sides weren't fundamentally in conflict, but for Yan Xiaozhong, the difference was like heaven and earth.

Because the army outside the city was the one Yan Xiaozhong had initially rallied!

Therefore, those who accompanied the Imperial Lord today—including the Privy Council Minister Yuwen Xuzhong, who was ultimately ordered to remain in the city, and the Imperial Camp Commander-in-Chief Wang Yuan, who was left to guard the city walls—even if not by intention, had expressed trust in him, Yan Xiaozhong. The latter, even if they had no such intention, had in fact publicly expressed doubts about this man.

After all, the Imperial Lord had made it very clear: it was correct that the army couldn't enter the city, but the idea that people couldn't leave the city was a false proposition. And since the Imperial Lord himself had come out, why should Yan Xiaozhong still suffer this grievance?

"Enough." After a moment of silence in the tent, the Imperial Lord Zhao Jiu suddenly spoke. "The several ministers also meant well in their caution... The nation is in peril, and we should bear with each other for the country's sake. Since things have come to this, and Zhai Chong has already dispatched troops, I will return first. Prefect Yan, come with me. Academician Lin, remain here and wait. Yanxiu (Liu Ziyu's style name), stay and assist Academician Lin."

Everyone quickly acknowledged the order.

And so, the Imperial Lord, not in the mood to wait for any battle report, left the tent and prepared to return to the city.

However, when the Imperial Lord, accompanied by several close officials, stepped outside and was hit by the warm breeze outside the tent, he suddenly froze. It turned out that under the many braziers and torches outside the tent, a man was lying prostrate on the ground, motionless—it was Zhai Chong, who had hurried out of the tent a quarter of an hour ago.

Surrounded by torches and braziers, the firelight was dazzling, and there was no high place to see what was happening in the distance. Naturally puzzled, Zhao Jiu simply put on a stern face and asked: "Minister Zhai, weren't you going to fight?"

"Reporting to His Majesty!" Zhai Chong still didn't raise his head, but he shouted loudly. "Your subject was preparing to go, but that little stockade of a mere five hundred cavalry was already small and shabby. Moreover, the Jin were arrogant and their defenses were poor, especially since their leader was a fake Jurchen Khitan. So my youngest son, Zhai Biao, took a hundred or so lads, carrying five or six barrels of oil, crossed from the shallow waters downstream, and first set fire to the stable. The horses inside were startled and fled, and the Jin had no choice but to abandon the stockade and chase after their horses in a sorry retreat! The commotion earlier was just those unsatisfied lads of mine rummaging for spoils inside the stockade!"

Zhao Jiu was stunned for a moment, then couldn't help but laugh: "You only need to say you've won. At most, add a bit of flair and say, 'The youngsters have already defeated the enemy'... Why go to such lengths?"

"Your subject was afraid His Majesty wouldn't believe it, so I was a bit long-winded. And being crude, I don't know how to speak well. I beg His Majesty's forgiveness!" Zhai Chong still didn't raise his head.

"Enough of that. Since things have come to this, according to what was said before, quickly join Academician Lin and this Adjutant Liu in reorganizing. Divide the army in two: those with clear backgrounds and reliability will enter the city tomorrow morning; the rest will be temporarily sent north to Jinxiang Town to station. And those who crossed the river tonight will all be incorporated into my personal guard!" The Imperial Lord Zhao Jiu slowly nodded, then walked away with his hands behind his back. By the time he spoke the last word, his voice was already a fading echo carried by the spring breeze.

"Your subject thanks His Majesty for his grace!" Zhai Chong quickly shouted loudly from the ground, his tone unable to hide his joy.

After a while longer, this man finally rose and, stealing a glance at the Imperial Lord's retreating figure heading toward the city, let out a sigh of relief, as if the Imperial Lord's red robe, headwrap, and golden belt had been pressing down on him from afar, making it hard to breathe.

Now, leaving aside what the local magnate Zhai Chong of Xiping was thinking, on the other side, the Imperial Lord Zhao Jiu calmly entered through the north gate. He first met Wang Yuan, the Imperial Camp Commander-in-Chief, who didn't dare say much. But when he reached the city center intersection—where Yuwen Xuzhong had been ordered to wait and preside—and saw the four ministers all present, he naturally couldn't avoid some questioning.

"Your Majesty, is everything well outside the city?" Xu Jingheng stepped forward solemnly.

Zhao Jiu couldn't help but laugh at this, then dismounted, opened his mouth as if to speak, then stopped—clearly preparing to put on a show.

Just as the Imperial Lord was adjusting his posture and mood, Yan Xiaozhong behind him couldn't wait and said coldly: "Let the several ministers know that as soon as His Majesty went out of the city, the youngsters defeated the enemy!"

Zhao Jiu had no choice but to straighten his face and correct himself: "That's right!"